Posts Tagged ‘Bloor St.’

On the Move

Posted: September 1, 2026 in general Toronto
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If you walk east on Bloor from Dundas West, you will encounter a railway bridge.

man pulling a suitcase as he walks on the sidewalk on Bloor street, eastbound, with GO train on railway bridge in the distance.

A section of the walls of this underpass have recently been painted by 40+ artists. The south side is now covered in new murals.

cyclists in bike lane on Bloor West, traveling eastbound and about to go under the railway tracks just west of Perth. Street art on the walls of the underpass

This underpass has been painted previously – back in 2015 both the north and south walls were painted in a Wallnoize project (see post from 2015). Some of the same artists appear on this updated version. This time it was StreetARToronto that sponsored the artworks. Let’s take a look at some of the murals (in no particular order)….

below: Stay young! An old man on a bike that he outgrew years ago! by Adrian Hayles

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West painted by Adrian Hayles - an old man in yellow suit and hat, riding a very small yellow, or gold, bicycle

below: Opola Karim painted this Toronto skyline scene, a view that is well known to anyone who has visited the Toronto islands.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West painte by Opola Karim, showing Toronto Harbour and Toronto skyline in a very stylized design, loon in water, beaver on a rock, Canada geese flying overhead

below: Peaceful, loving hands joining together by Phillip Saunders aka Loveishere

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, by Phillip Saunders, a k a Love is here. Four hands in shades of beige and brown, 2 with peace sign, one holding a round object with a red heart on it,

below: Close to the west end of the underpass is this colourful section. The collection of birds on the right side were painted by two artists, Just J. Art (the hummingbird and the hibiscus flower) and Ambsoul Art

two street art murals on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West. On the right side is collection of birds on the right side were painted by two artists Just J. and Ambsoul. BJR painted the let side, first nations symbols and objects like a bear with a fish in its mouth,

below: The left part (of the above image) BJR aka Bradley J. Reinhardt

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, byBJR, or Bradley J. Reinhart, bear with a blue fish in its mouth and a red heart on its side

below: Ambsoul Art’s feathery bird.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, bird head, part of a larger mural, by Ambsoul

below: From under the bridge, glimpses of colour between the steel girders and concrete barricades.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West as seen from across the street metal girders supporting bridge, traffic on the road,

below: Three of the artworks

three street art murals on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West. Artists were Curtia Wright, Phillip Saunders, and Artistic Perception.

below: Curtia Wright – a portrait with yellow flowers

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West by Curtia Wright, portrait of a brown woman with yellowy brown eyes, yellow flowers on either side of her

below: More women’s faces – some with no mouths? – have they been silenced? By Artistic Perception aka Kanisha

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West by Artistic Perception. three black women with short curly black hair, clothes in grey shades, with a garland of daisies

below: The Toronto Railpath runs beside these tracks.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West where it joins Wallace street entrance to the Toronto Railpath

below: By Getso – it’s green, it has sharp teeth and a tail, and it can stand on two legs (he’s standing in a boat)….

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West by Getso, a green crocdile, standing, with tail wrapped around a brown pole, beside water

below: EGR (with the help of some high school students) painted these cool glasses …. and the young woman on the skateboard.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West by EGR, woman with sunglasses that reflected Toronto skyline and a person cycling past, red rims and blue glass
street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West by EGR, a young woman skateboarding

below: Precious cargo in the old milk crate in a mural by Wenting Li aka Wenting Things.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West by Wenting Li, A cyclist riding a green bicycle past a stylized blue neighborhood skyline, transporting a growing branch with clusters of red fruit in a bright orange milk crate.

below: Another cyclist pedaling along, this time by Isabella Fassler

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: Caitlin Taguibao and Andrea Manica created a mural of people and flowers.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, a mural of people and flowers created by Caitlin Taguibao and Andrea Manica
street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, a mural of people and flowers created by Caitlin Taguibao and Andrea Manica

below: A boy on the water and a blue jay watching him by Bunso, aka Night Owl Drawings

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: Adrian Hayles’ man in yellow again, with a 26 cent stamp by Frannie Potts.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: A closer look at the bird and flowers on the stamp.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: Part of the Nick Sweetman mural showcasing fish.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: Visible Noise, aka Andrew Patterson

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: A pink cat with spots is the result of a collaboration between Muys and Chris Perez. Or is it a leopard?

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: Timmifuk removing not one mask, but two.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West by Timmifuk, young man with green face is removing two masks, one is blue and the other is a demon red

below: Rowell Soller

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West by Rowell Soller
street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West by Rowell Soller
street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: StephVonAwesome aka Stephanie Avery

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West cartoon llike characters by StephVonAwesome aka Stephanie Avery<
monsters having a tea party, mural by Stephanie Avery, including three eyed orange guy and purple furry guy
murals on wall of Bloor street railway underpass by , Isabella Fassler, Caitlin Taguibao, Andrea Manica, and Stephanie Avery

below: “Water is Life”, Bubzart

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, water is life, pregnant woman

below: A peace dove in a swirl of calligraphy, by Medeio

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West A peace dove with an olive branch in its beak, in a swirl of calligraphy, by Medeio, monotone grey

below: Danilo Deluxo, a woman in an elaborate helmet, futuristic pilot.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, by Danilo Deluxo, a woman in an elaborate helmet, futuristic pilot.

below: Facing each other, Danilo Deluxo and Drippin’ Soul

two street art murals on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, Danilo Deluxo and Drippin' Soul

below: Using shades of black, teal and magenta, Drippin’ Soul has created a very metallic looking profile

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, by Drippin Soul, woman's portrait in profile in shades of black, teal and magenta

below: That’s one creepy red eye! Or is it two red eyes? Ahhhh…. the red eye and brass (bronze?) pieces are part of a mask and the design was apparently “inspired by the taotie motifs of the Shang dynasty” (Quote is from MonkYi’s instagram page). The Shang dynasty dates back to between 1600 BC and 1050 BC; it marked the beginning of the Bronze Age in China. A taotie was a mythological creature that represented greed and gluttony.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West by Monk Yi, woman wearing a mask that has one red eye
two men walking past street art murals on the wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: Ghazaraza‘s ladies are sharing a pot of tea.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West by Ghazaraza, two ladies are sharing a pot of tea, seated on the ground facing each other. Pink flowers in the middle

below: Flowers in her hair, flowers everywhere… Oh, I don’t know just why She simply caught my eye…. Or you can all it by its title, “Wildlife in Bloom” by Lula Lumaj.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West by Lula Lumaj, woman with long dark hair, flowers in her hair, monarch butterfly, bee, other flowers around her
street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, a butterfly and a bee by some small pink flowers

below: A cute little grey cat with green eyes.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, a grey cat with green eyes and a little pink nose
three street art murals on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West. an image of a GO rain engine is in the middle

below: GO train – definitely On the Move!

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, image of a GO train engine

below: “The Lookout aka the Fruit Bandits” not letting a fence get in the way! by Jim Bravo

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, by Jim Bravo, a group of children is picking fruit from trees that are on the other side of a fence, title is fruit bandits
street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: Mother and daughter watching the traffic in a mural by Colin Tea.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, Mother and daughter watching the traffic in a mural by Colin Tea, girl is called Violet
three muralon a railway underpass, bloor street , street art, urban art,

below: Greetings from West Toronto by Rage WIlliams

Greetings from West Toronto is the text in this white, gold, and pink mural by Rage Williams.
street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: Reboser’s athlete – a football player sprinting down the field.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, football players by reboser
street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: From the The Graffiti Studio ….

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: Jeff Blackburn‘s young person on the move with drink in one hand and backpack in the other.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: Two dogs and a stack of old tires, a painting by Megan Oldhues

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, two dogs and a stack of old tires, by Megan Oldhues
street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: Hummingbird by an orange flower.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, hummingbird

below: Three animals by a river from Waskwane Designs – beaver, bear and wolf (with a few bees and butterflies too)

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, by Waskwane Designs, animal, beaver beside a river
street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West by Waskwane Designs, bear with a butterfly
street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West, by Waskwane Designs, animal, wolf in black and white

below: Not for Sale, letters and flowers in a small square of concrete at one end of the wall.

street art mural on wall of railway underpass on Bloor street West

below: A lone pigeon watches me as I pass by.

pigeon sitting under a bridge, up high

below: The wall of the underpass peters out by the time Bloor Street reaches Perth.

Link for more information on StART – StreetARToronto

Photos taken August 2026

changes, again… and again….

Posted: May 15, 2026 in construction, intersections, locations, stores
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After I got off the subway at Bloor but before I got to the street, the first construction change of the day hit me in the face (luckily not literally!).  Bloor Street East is now a mess.

glass doors on Bloor street, entrance from subway to street, woman entering, blue hoardings outside because of construction on bloor street
construction on Bloor street near Yonge
construction on Bloor street near Yonge

below: “The Bay” sign has been removed from the old store.   Founded in 1670 to control the fur trade in the area, the Hudson Bay Company used to lay claim to being North America’s oldest continuously operating company.  The company went bankrupt late in 2025 and all of their stores have closed including this one.  The complex (includes 34 storeys above) was opened in 1974 and was referred to as the Hudson Bay Centre.  Now it is just 2 Bloor St. East.   The next question is how does one re-purpose a large windowless space on a busy street?  (personal aside – I started by honeymoon at the Plaza II which was the original hotel in the complex.  I won’t tell you how long ago that was, but the Quebec Nordiques were in a playoff game that day).

construction site on bloor takes over sidewalk in front of royal bank, beside old Hudsons Bay Co, the Bay, concrete building

bloor street, looking east towards yonge
gray haired senior women walking west on bloor towards yonge intersection, with construction fence beside them, north side of bloor

below: Upwards at Yonge & Bloor

looking skyward at yonge and bloor, stops of three glass towers

Of shorts and strawberries, and hoping for spring .  So far it’s been a cool (or rather cold) May.

large stuffed strawberry in a store window, clothing store, summer clothes including shorts

Shorts!

man standing on sidewalk waiting to cross street, wearing black t shirt and grey shorts, dark grey car on street, across from Eataly restaurant on Bloor Street

below: On the south side of Bloor is another concrete building from the 1970s, the Manulife Centre, which has undergone a transformation at street level in recent years.

manulife centre on bloor street, older concrete levels above with newer glass facades at street level

below: Found on the  City of Toronto archives website, a photo from its early days. (As another aside, after graduating from high school, I worked for a few months at a store in the basement – back in the day when Ashleys, Creeds, and Birks had stores there.  Bay Bloor Radio may be the sole survivor?)

vintage photo, faded colour, from City of Toronto Archives, manulife center at Bay and Bloor (southeast corner), concrte brutalist architecture

source: Fonds 200, Series 1465, File 750, Item 14

below: A contrast between the Manulife Centre and the new towers on the south side of Bloor (east and west of Yonge)…  even the upper levels of the Hudson Bay Centre can be seen in the distance.

bloor street, south side, looking east towards yonge

below: A little farther west on Bloor…. another concrete building with recessed windows.  Very much the style at the time!

below: Northwest corner of Bay & Bloor with yet another concrete building from the 1960s and 1970s  (1200 Bay Street was built in 1966).  The last time that I walked here, the lower levels were boarded up and painted black.  Now they are hiding behind a large expanse of Tiffany Blue.  There are rumblings of an 87 storey tower being built here.  Dutch Dutch developers Kroonenberg Group and ProWinko filed a development application with the city to build such a tower back in 2020.

large blue tiffany ad with word love spelled in large capital letters, surrounded by image of a gold necklace, traffic lights in front, intersection of bay and bloor.

below: Looking west on Cumberland Street

Cumberland Street

view looking up to top of buildings and trees, from cumberland street, looking west

below: But there are things that don’t change – like cars getting stuck in an intersection on a red light.

Avenue Road and Bloor intersection, in front of the ROM, people crossing on green light, car stopped in intersection

below: Never ending renovations at the Royal Ontario Museum

construction at entrance to ROM, Royal Ontario Museum,

looking south on University towwards Queens Park Circle, construction

two people outside the museum near museum subway station entrance, that has two blue porta potties sitting beside it

below: It has been sitting empty for years.  The McLaughlin Planetarium closed in 1995 after the provincial government cut its funding.  It wasn’t even thirty years old at the time; it opened in 1968.   It is a big cement box with a large dome on top and is not very photogenic!  It was sold to the University of Toronto back in 2009 but it is only now that redevelopment is about to occur.

The Planetarium, beside Royal Ontario Museum, empty, is being prepped for demolition, front view

below: Backside view.   This post has been difficult to write – so many changes.  One of the reasons that I started this blog was to document the changes happening in the city.  I hadn’t expected those changes to be quite so relentless.  Never ending.  A perpetual motion machine of changes. Are we tired of winning yet?  This picture is already out of date – there are photos of the demolition popping up online now that show the dome broken open and disappearing.

The Planetarium, beside Royal Ontario Museum, empty, is being prepped for demolition, back view

below: Museum subway station is getting a new elevator entrance from the sidewalk on University Avenue in front of where the Planetarium is/was.

museum subway station is getting a new elevator entrance, from sidewalk on university avenue

below: Little blue signs of spring dot the lawn.  Emmanuel College (U of T) is in the background.  It is affiliated with the United Church of Canada and is one of the members of the Toronto School of Theology.

purple blue spring flowers among the grass by a brick gate post,

below: Part of University of Toronto Law School.

university of toronto la school, flavelle house

below: Annesley Hall, Victoria University, U of T,was  built in 1903 in the Queen Anne Revival style.   Annesley Hall was the first university residence built for women in Canada and is still used as such. (What?, no changes?)

side of Annesley Hall residence, Victoria University, red brick building

below: Charles Street West where a few original houses remain steadfast.

Charles st east with variety of architectural styles including a row of second empire homes

below: Still on Charles Street – but it is a perspective that is now very common around the city as everything moves upward, taller and taller.   Egos get stoked and massaged as yet another “tallest” tower gets built, only to be outdone by someone else down the line….

loking skyward, on Charles st east, to tops of highrise buildings
looking east on Charles street east

below: “La Scala”by by Canadian sculptor and architect William McElcheran.  The women are walking up the stairs, or walking around in circles…

sculpture, black metal cutout figures mounted on a cement pole, looks like a person walking around, or climbing up, the pole,

below: A peak at what is behind – lots of balconies and stairs and even an upper level addition.

back of buildings on charles street, balconies, stairs, additions, parking lot,

below: St. Nicholas Street runs parallel to Yonge, one street west.  It runs south from Charles Street to Wellesley.

St Nicholas Street, looking south

below: 81 St. Nicholas is this red brick building with the interesting contrasting brick detail across the top. It was built in 1912 and is known as the Robert Barron Stables.  In 1889 Robert Barron built a store at Yonge and Charles.  A few years later he added this building, his stables, behind the grocery store.

St. Nicholas street, looking north around number 81

below: There are stretches of Yonge Street where there are many closed storefronts.  This usually indicates that a developer is sitting on a chunk of properties and is in the process of accumulating more… or is waiting for approval to redevelop what he already has.  Nothing moves quickly.  It’s just sad to see the emptiness and decay in the meantime.

The Diners Corner, closed Jamaican restaurant, window

doorway of hair salon, now closed, with metal gate covering the entrance

below: Filed under “learn something new everyday” is the fact that there is such a thing as soy milk volcano buns.  I assume that they are $7 each and not $70!

sign advertising soy milk volcano buns for sale, bakery, small shop, on Yonge Street

stores on Yonge Street, three storey red brick building with Popeyes and a vape shop, beside painted brick building with British candy store, jelly belly candies

in the window of a chinese bakery, lettle dumpling boy

a red mailbox on the side of a building, with graffiti, girls face, on it, yonge street scene behind

cyclist on Yonge street, through intersection, while pedestrians wait on the other side of the street for a green light

yonge street scene, blue trash bin overflowing, people walking on the sidewalk

below: Charles Street East (just east of Yonge).   The large mural on the side of the apartment building is “Toronto & Stadt Frankfurt Am Main” and it was painted by Justus Becker (aka COR).   The reflection within the glasses depicts the skylines of both Toronto and Frankfurt and represents the sister city relationship between the two cities.  See that orange and white awning?  That’s a gelato place – a fabulous gelato place!… and that is where I ended my walk, almost a circle back to Yonge & Bloor.

Charles St, just east of Yonge, large mural

 

Pride Parade 2022

Posted: June 27, 2022 in events, people
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little colourful plastic windmill attached to mirror of firetruck, also 2 yellow balloons and 1 green balloon

Dancing in the streets.  Pride 2022.

Toronto Pride Parade 2022, start of route, man in long pink gloves posing with woman in hat with flowers on it

people sitting on scaffolding over sidewalk by construction site to watch pride parade, two have rainbow flags

person in costume at pride parade, hair wig made of ribbons, big puffy skirt, ribbons in curls as collar

group cheering and blowing whistles, arms up, getting ready for pride parade, TD canada trust group in green t shirts with rainbows on them

stuffed tiger with rainbow garland around it, on front of a motorcycle

group dancing, choreography, with pink puffs in each hand, practising before the pride parade

group dancing, choreography, with pink puffs in each hand, practising before the pride parade

young girl helping to hold white banner, marching with pride, other hands holding the banner too, toronto pride parade 2022

face painted person, with sparkles on face too, holding a sign with all the colours of the LGBQT flag, with words be proud, born this way

man in grey hair, silver crown, bending over to talk closely to woman in hat covered with multi coloured flowers, start of pride parade

rainbow striped ankle socks, and running shoes with red, yellow, and blue on them, standing on a sidewalk box to get a better look at passing pride parade

young woman tying orange balloons to a pride parade float, NDP float, she's wearing orange too

marilyn munro air kissing, under rainbow umbrella, white dress and gloves and sparkly silver purse

kids playing in bubbles while a man in a yellow t shirt walks past, on a street,

it gets better canada on purple t shirts, holding hands, people, pride parade

placard at pride parade that says protect bipoc queer kids

great dane dog with a group getting ready to walk in pride parade

large letters S and I made of balloons in a pride parade, held by a man in yellow with white hat

3 teenage girls plus another woman standing on side of street watching pride parade, temporary tattoos on their legs,

three young people holding a rainbow type flag over their heads as they watch pride parade

two men in pink at pride parade

two wagons full of trojan condom packages

two people at pride parade, one in rainbow striped shirt and the other in rainbow netting outfit with stickers over nipples, thong underwear under neath

member of skule university of toronto engineering school in pride parade

people with signs at pride parade, pflag group, totally rad mum and dad, labels are for canned soup, love is love

women cheering and taking photos while watching pride parade

some members of triggerfish in their speedo suits, dancing with red fans

plastic fuzzy garlands on front of a fire truck

man with rainbow bandana around head, and scarf on back as well as many bracelets, holding small Canadian flag, dances in the street for pride parade

crowds on scaffolding, many levels up, at Yonge and Bloor

policeman and crowd at pride, lots of bubbles in the air

a boy holding a Canadian rainbow flag, small girl beside him with sunglasses lowered

woman in magenta glasses and cowboy hat laughing with woman with rainbow bandana over her head

getting ready for pride parade, man with gold collar and not much else, woman in red sari, tattoos, drinking from bottle

people up on scaffolding to get above street level to watch pride parade

woman watching pride parade is holding a small dog with a rainbow bandana around its neck

back view of two people hugging, one in a plaid shirt and the other in a rainbow t shirt

Toronto Pride Parade, person with tattoo on upper arm holding an orange sign that says we love trans youth. Tattoo says In a dream you saw a way to survive and you were full of joy

little plastic windmills in different colours with little pride flags as decorations on a float in pride parade

Photos from Dyke March 2022

Open streets on Yonge and Bloor.

Posted: September 19, 2018 in events, people
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two young women holding signs that say, Love Open Streets, prove it. #openstreetsto

Open Streets – the second, and final, Open Streets for 2018 was held last Sunday.   Large sections of Bloor and Yonge Streets downtown were closed to traffic leaving lots of room for cyclists, pedestrians and a number of activities.

below: Axe Capoeira

a man is flipping upside down in front of an audience on the sidewalk

below: Mayada’s Belly Dance at Yonge & Bloor

the intersection of Yonge and Bloor at Open Streets, belly dancers performing for an audience, Nordstroms Rack store in the background

below: And other dancing in the street too – or rather, a very active fitness session!

four young people dancing in the street, two male and two female.

below: It looks like animals can dance too… this dog seems to be having a great time!

people in life size animal costumes including heads, dance along in a fitness session on Yonge street during Open Streets

below: Little drummer boy on a fancy Home Depot drum set!

a young boy uses wooden drum sticks to bang on upturned orange plastic buckets from Home Depot, outside, activity at Open Streets

looking east on Bloor past the Royal Ontario Museum, no traffic, for Open Streets, some cyclists, tall buildings in the background

below: Decorating bikes and scooters

close up of hands decorating a scooter with flowers and foam shapes

below: Sharing a hammock in the middle of Yonge Street.

a young couple share a hammock strung between two trees on a diving strip own the middle of Yonge Street, their bikes are parked beside the hammock

a woman with flowers in hair in profile

below: Trumpet lessons

a man teaches a boy to blow a trombone, outdoors, activity on the sidewalk during Open Streets

a couple cycles together up Yonge street, on rented Bixi bikes, holding hands

below: Yoga in the park

doing yoga on grass laid down on the street, Bloor Street, temporary park for Open Streets

below: And for those who were looking for something less active…

a man has fallen asleep on the grass beside the OPen Streets Park sign,

below:  Yonge Street was also on the route of the 2018 Toronto AIDS walk

a policeman on a bike leads an AIDS walk up Yonge Street, people holding a banner follow him and then many people wearing red T-shirts

people wearing red T-shirts and carrying signs, walking in a walk to raise funds and awareness for AIDS, on Yonge Street.

below: A Lamborghini.  0 to 60 in how many seconds?

turquoise Lamburghini bike locked along with other bikes

two women sitting on the steps of a building having a discussion, a yellow bike is in the foreground

two women walk with their young children, strollers, down Yonge Street during OPen Streets, downtown Toronto in the background

pride parade 2017

Posted: June 26, 2017 in events, people
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The usual cast of characters, plus or minus a few.

Floats, marchers, and crowds.
Flags, banners, and signs.
Flamboyance, body paint, and tutus.
Unicorns, fruit, and super soakers.

a group of boys and young men at the start of the pride parade

a woman in a white t shirt with rainbow on the front, and a straw hat is passing out rainbow flags to the crowd. others in the parade behind her are doing the same, others are waving the flags.

two men in black t shirts, one has t shirt that says love is (repeated five times) and is waving a small rainbow flag. THe other man is holding a sign up over his head with a picture of a crowd on it as well as some words (many words) that say At the local level, Get REAL is made up of university campus teams across Canada helping high school students unlearn LGBT discrimination and bullying

two men with a lot of bodypaint of rainbows and flowers as well some sparkly bits

men holding super soakers on top of a pride parade float

a police men watches an intersection of streets as the parade passes, he justs fits under the wing of a large inflatable westjet plane

two men in fruit costumes as well as large oversized glasses

a black man wearing just green tight shorts and green sunglasses is standing on the TD float, a woman is in the background (she is looking after the music).

a young man holds an orange sign .. on the sign is a picture of a raccoon holding a rainbow flag with the words happy pride 2017

bud light float at pride, picture of 4 large cans - a blue, green, red, and yellow can with a person in front of each in a tight body suit the same colour as the can. crowd in front of the float.

three women walking in the pride parade with a turquoise, blue and pink banner, and unicorn horns on their head, stop to talk to a young girl who also has a unicorn horn on her head

lots of people with arms up in the air waving small rainbow flags

crowd watching the pride parade on Bloor Street

a man waiting for the pride parade to start holding a sign that says yup I am a gay. Person inlong frilly pink gown and massive pink feather head dress, posing for pictures

a young Asian man, photographer, smiles as he gets ready to take pictures of mostly nude man with long leather gloves on

the back of a decorated t-shirt, glitter lips with tongue stuck out.

pflag member in purple, holding up a placard that say being LGBTQ2S is not abnormal or unnatural but turning against your own child is s

woemn smiling for the camera, dressed up in colourful clothes and holding rainbow flags.

man with bushy beard, a black cap and a top made out of yellow police caution tape

two women walk together holding hands. one has a white shirt that says gay as fuck in pink letters and the other is wearing a sleeveless body suit in rainbow stripes

a young black girl is sitting on her father's shoulders. She is holding a pink sign with purple hand written letters that say vote against hate

up on the TD float in the pride parade, a person is a long wavy yellow wig and wearing a striped top and short green shiny skirt, is blowing kisses to the crowd.

two young kids, a boy and a girl, are standing within a white cut out square (instagram thing) that says alll aboard on the bottom

a girl holds up a sign from the East Enders Everyone belongs, that has the expression everyone belongs, written in an indigenous language as well as arabic and chinese (or other Asian language)

the bums and hands of a few men wearing red swim suits with the words trigger fish on them

two kids stand behind metal barricades while waiting for the parade to begin

an older man is standing on the sidewalk, wearing a police cap and a patchwork vest in rainbow colours with all kinds of different fabrics, busy, bright,

a woman wearing a t shirt that says free hugs is carrying a pink sign that says you do you

a person in a blond wig and magenta shiny top and matching hat, an Asian woman is having her picture taken as well.

a woman wearing blue rimmed sunglasses and rainbow paper flowers in her hair is looking directly at the camera and shouting. She has a t shirt on that says Positive Space toroto

a man naked except for a pink fuzzy vest and a pink cowboy hat is standing on the sidewalk. There is a string tied around his penis. A man is pushing an empty wheelchair in the background

feeling hungry?

Posted: January 16, 2017 in alleys, graffiti and street art, public art, stores
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You can almost find it by following your nose!

I’ve been in many alleys where the smell has been less than desirable but today I was taking pictures in an alley that smelled wonderful!  A small alley running south from Bloor Street beside the The Dirty Bird restaurant….or more accurately The Dirty Bird Chicken & Waffles.

And the pictures that I was taking there?
Well, they were of chicken and waffles and people eating of course!

from a mural by elicser along the exterior wall of the dirty bird chicken and waffle restaurant - a woman is sitting at a table in the restaurant

Elicser has painted a mural in the alley alongside the restaurant.

a man in a red baseball cap on backwards is drinking,

below: I love how the straw is placed!

from a mural by elicser along the exterior wall of the dirty bird chicken and waffle restaurant - a man is sitting at a table in the restaurant . he has a very large chicken and waffle sandwich in front of him as well as a pink milkshake. The red and white straw of the miclkshake is actually a venting pipe

from a mural by elicser along the exterior wall of the dirty bird chicken and waffle restaurant - a woman and a man are sitting at a table in the restaurant eating chicken and waffle sandwiches

from a mural by elicser along the exterior wall of the dirty bird chicken and waffle restaurant - a woman is sitting at a table in the restaurant with a very tall chicken and waffle sandwich in her hands

 

playing in the streets

Posted: August 16, 2015 in events
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Open Streets,
Yonge and Bloor Streets,
Sunday 16th August 2015

 

looking south on Yonge St. from Bloor street on a morning when no cars allowed. There are people walking on the street. There are also two kids with pink balloons.

Two men wearing red T shirts are riding their bikes on Yonge street, passing a woman who is using chalk to draw a floor on the street

A young boy is playing with a hula hoop in front of a sign that says Give It a Try

below: Slow bike race

A man is riding his bike as slowly as possible and still stay within a narrow path as part of a slow bike race. Other people are standing beside their bikes and watching him

A man is skateboarding on the street

A group of adults and kids are doing the limbo with a long rope on the street on a day when the road is closed to traffic.

A couple is pushing a stroller up Yonge St. past some of the stores. No cars on the street

A few people walk on the streets, two bikes also, the bikes have pink balloons attached to them, they are on Yonge Street, just south of Bloor in front of the construction on the west side of Yonge, the lower storey of old brick stores is boarded up, the upper storeys are still visible

A young man is standing in a doorway beside a hair and nails shop on Yonge Street.

Two women are jogging, and other people are walking, on Yonge street on a Sunday morning at Open Streets Toronto so there is no traffic.

#OpenStreetsTO

gumhead revisited

Posted: February 24, 2015 in locations, public art
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On the 4th of February I posted some photos and information on Douglas Coupland’s ‘Gumhead’.  This is the installation where people are meant to interact with a large head by sticking chewed gum to it.  The plain black head gets transformed into something new (a sticky mess?).  At that point, the head been inside Holts for Men for about two weeks.  One of the photos from early in February is this one:

A large (about 6 foot tall) black head sits in the front of a menswear store. People have been encouraged to add chewed wads of gum to the head. It is about one third covered.

Yesterday, almost three weeks later, I revisited it and this is the photo that I took:

Douglas Coupland's 'Gumhead' inside Holts For Men store in Toronto. It is a very large black sculpture of a man's head to which people have been attaching gobs of chewed gum.

I was expecting to see more gum on the head.  After all, a similar piece in Vancouver was totally covered by the time the exhibit finished.   As I stood there in my winter walking clothes, i.e. not dressed for shopping at Holts, I thought of a few things.

The Vancouver ‘Gumhead’ was outside with easy access to all.

Although this ‘Gumhead’ is visible from the street, it doesn’t invite people to come inside and interact with it.   Unless they have heard about the exhibit, passersby may not realize that they have the option of sticking their own wad of chewed gum on some guy’s big face.  In addition, inside a store is not really a public place.  It would be interesting to know how many people came in off the street to take a closer look at it.  By ‘people’ I mean non-customers with no prior knowledge of ‘Gumhead’.

And anyway,  it’s ugly.  That’s my two cents worth.

You have until March 9th if you want to get yourself to Bloor and Bellair  (near Bloor & Yonge) to participate.  Gum is provided.

 

pride parade

Posted: June 30, 2014 in events, people
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Shooting the pride parade was a lot different from shooting the dyke march!  The pride parade is much bigger and by necessity much more tightly controlled.  I was able to walk alongside the women in the dyke march but the streets were barricaded and non-participants kept off the route for the pride parade.

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crowds are behind barricades along the streets, policemen on motorcycles are waiting at the end of the street. parade hasn't started yet

looking west on Bloor towards Yonge.

I walked the first part of the route, along Bloor Street, just before the parade started.  Lots of crowds were behind the metal bars; a few police were watching/ignoring me.  When I turned the corner at Yonge St., I realized just how controlled the crowds were!  I chose not to continue walking south on Yonge.  A policeman opened the barricade enough to let me out.  After that I walked amongst the crowds….. and saw nothing of the parade!  Too many people!  But they were interesting people and I enjoyed walking amongst them. …. until Dundas when there were so many people and no one could move.   That’s was my cue to exit stage right.

So here’s a salute to all those who joined the fun.  A little raunchy and a little over the top at times but all good.

Two women in banana costumes posing for the camera.

Kudos to these two ladies who showed up in banana costumes! I asked them if they were part of a group, but no, they’re just fruity they said. I hope they joined the parade had fun (and didn’t get too hot!… unless they peeled…. )

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Two women, or men dressed as women, one in black and one in white. The one in white has a large black & white clockface behind her

timeless

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A group of people are standing behind metal barricades waiting for the parade to start, some are waving and some are smiling. A group of three girls are wearing pink boas.

pink, with smiles, waiting for the parade to begin

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A group of policemen and policewomen pose for a group shot before the pride parade

Before the parade started – They were actually posing for someone else… but I suggested that they look a little livelier, wave their hands or something…. thanks for obliging!

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viewable & captured from all angles

viewable, & captured, from all angles

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One guy in red underpants (with Christmas bells attached to the front) is pointing to the bare bottoms of his two male friends. He is making an exaggerated facial expression of surprise and shock.

boys just wanna have fun

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Two older men dressed in white are under a rainbow striped umbrella. One has a white boa, the other has a red boa.

keeping the sun away. These umbrellas were great – very photogenic!

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A woman with very large and almost bare breasts. Her face is decorated

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Two men are standing beind, and leaning on, the barricade. They are wearing multicoloured beads, incuding some very big beads that look more like balls for a Christmas tree

big grins! The one in blue was more game than his partner…. you could almost say that one in grey is grimacing more than grinning. Thanks guys!

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A group of men are standing behind barricades.

He had such a wonderful smile and he seemed so happy that I couldn’t resist taking his picture.

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four girls, each with a different coloured mask, like the ninja turtles TV characters wear.

ninjas, mostly unmasked

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a boy is sitting on his father's shoulders

a better view!

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many people lining the route of the pride parade on Yonge St.

The crowds at Yonge and Wellesley just as the parade reached that part of the route.

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A row of people wearing hats in the foreground, looking across an empty street to a very large crowd behind barricades

How does one even start to calculate how many people were there?

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A quick shot - he saw my camera, turned and quickly posed, and I got the shot. It wasn't until I downloaded the photos that I saw the marvellous juxtaposition!

A quick shot – he saw my camera, turned and quickly posed, and I got the shot. It wasn’t until I downloaded the photos that I saw the marvellous juxtaposition!

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a group of four girls wearing rainbow curly wigs, frilly short skirts and rainbow striped socks are walking up the street between two rows of parade watchers

almost their own little parade!

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streetcars at the intersection of Yonge & College, all corners are packed with people

stopping the parade to let the College/Carlton streetcar through

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Two people are standing on the window sill of a large window. The woman is wearing a striped dress. She is texting. The guy beside her is topless, wearing grey shorts

She doesn’t seem to be having fun – standing in the window of Starbucks at College & Yonge.

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Wall to wall people at the intersection of Yonge and Dundas. All you can see in the photo are people's heads.

I walked the parade route at about the same speed that the parade went. An hour and a half later, I reached Yonge & Dundas where the crowds were so thick no one could move.

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Two boys are standing on a window ledge so they are above a crowd of people. The small boy doesn't look too happy.

At the corner of Yonge & Dundas – by the time I made it to this intersection, I was beginning to agree with the boy in green!

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Two topless women are painted in big rainbow colours. Two clothed women are posing for a photo with them.

posing with the body painters – Body Art by Tania was the booth on Church St., near the start of the parade.

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